Kobo's iOS apps have been enhanced with new social-media features and Instapaper integration.
Kobo

A few days ago, Kobo turned 1 year old. To celebrate the anniversary, the company enhanced its iPad and iPhone/iPod Touch apps, adding Instapaper integration and new social-media features that allow you to share what you're reading with others.

All in all, the Kobo iOS apps look more jazzed up and we expect all the big e-reader players to continue building out the social-media functionality in their apps (Amazon and Barnes & Noble also feature social-media hooks in both their devices and apps). The Instapaper integration is interesting because it allows you save Web clippings as you surf the Web and store them in your Kobo library for later viewing. You can also sync those clippings across multiple devices.

What we also found intriguing is that the Kobo app can now keep track of your reading habits. It records stats on how many books you've read in a month, how long you read each time you open a book, and how far you've read (you can see those stats but others can't). This is info that publishers would probably like to get their hands on.

For more info on the enhancements, read Kobo's full post detailing them. Also, let us know what you think about the whole concept of making reading more social and, if you've used the Kobo app, how it compares with Amazon's Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook apps.

About the author

Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET's Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable e-reader and e-publishing expert. He's also the author of the novels Knife Music and The Big Exit. Both titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, and Nook e-books.
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